Referral Script: A Follow-Up Call 3 Days After a Customer Buys a Car. What to Say to Get a Referral.
Our data shows that when customers introduce their salesperson to friends and family, 1 in 5 of those introductions turns into a car sale within 90 days. Your goal is to help each customer introduce you to 3 people they know during the conversation.
The day 3 follow-up call is your chance to check how they’re enjoying the car and tell them about your referral program.
Don’t lead with “Can you refer me to anyone?” Instead, say: “I’m calling to help you get set up to get paid. That way, when your friends or family buy a car from us, you get your referral reward payment without any delays.”
Let them know you’ll stay on the phone to help if they get stuck. Once they’ve connected their Venmo or PayPal, say: “Great, now you’re set up to get paid. Let me show you how to make an introduction. It’s super easy.”
Tone guidelines:
- Confident
- Casual.
- Helpful.
- Quick and simple.
- Never apologetic.
- Never optional.
- Never a long explanation.
This should feel like: “Let’s do this together real quick.”
Step 1: Check how they’re enjoying the car
| YOU | "Hey [CustomerName], it’s [YourName] from [Dealership]. How are you doing? I’m calling to check in. How are you liking your [CarModel] so far?" |
| CUSTOMER | [Let them answer] |
| YOU | “Have you had a chance to show it to your friends or family? What do they think?” |
| CUSTOMER | [Let them answer] |
Step 2: Offer to be their tech support. Help them get set up to get paid.
| YOU | “By the way, I wanted to make sure you know about our referral program. Whenever you introduce a friend or family member to me and they buy a car, you’ll get [$Amount] as a thank-you for the introduction. We have a referral app where you can connect your Venmo or PayPal and get paid fast. While I have you on the phone, let’s get you set up so we can make sure you get paid on time. I’ll stay on the phone and help if you get stuck. Do you have 5 minutes right now?” |
| CUSTOMER | "Yes" |
Step 3: Help them download your referral app
| YOU | "Great! Do you have an iPhone or Android? |
| CUSTOMER | [Let them answer] |
| YOU | iPhone → "Open Apple App Store and search for [Your dealership name]." Android → "Open Google Play and search for [Your dealership name]." |
| CUSTOMER | Wait for the customer to download the app. |
Step 4: Get them set up to get paid
| IMPORTANT Your goal is to help the customer connect their Venmo or PayPal to the wallet in the referral app before they leave. Our data shows that 50% of customers who do this start referring, compared with just 16% who don’t—about 3 times the referral rate. Connecting their Venmo or PayPal account makes the referral reward payment feel real and gives you a chance to show them how easy it is to introduce you to people and get paid. Avoid words like “earn,” which can imply work or effort. Use “get paid” instead. It keeps the focus on something they want: getting paid. | |
| YOU | "First, let's make sure you're set up to get paid. Click on the Wallet tab." |
| CUSTOMER | Taps the Wallet tab. |
| YOU | "Do you see Venmo or PayPal? How would you like to get paid?" |
| CUSTOMER | "Venmo" |
| YOU | "Great, click that button and connect your Venmo account. Once your referrals qualify for the reward, the money gets deposited straight into this account." |
| CUSTOMER | Connects their account. |
Step 5: Help them send their first introduction
| YOU | "Great, now you’re set up to get paid. Let me show you how to make an introduction. It’s super easy. Tap the plus sign at the bottom middle of your screen. What do you see?" |
| CUSTOMER | "It says sync your phone contacts." |
| YOU | “Great. Go ahead and tap that. It’s just like syncing your contacts on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or LinkedIn." |
| CUSTOMER | Wait for the customer to sync phone contacts. |
| YOU | "Do you have a brother or a sister? What are their names? Alternatives: “Think of someone you’d text today.” “Think of someone you talked to last week.” “Think of someone you talked to this month.” “Think of people who ask you for advice.” DO NOT SAY: “Who do you know shopping for a car? Most people will say, “I can't think of anyone.” The goal is not to find someone buying a car today. The goal is to get your name and contact information in front of more people so they know who you are and call you when they need a car. |
| CUSTOMER | Wait for the customer as they are scrolling through |
| YOU | “Tap "Make an intro" button. The introduction message is already written. Hit send. That’s it." |
| CUSTOMER | Wait for the customer to send. Stay silent. Smile. |
| YOU | “That’s it—it’s that easy. Anytime you hear someone say, ‘I need a car,’ just use this app to introduce them to me. Now tap the ‘Referrals’ tab. Every referral you send shows up here. You can check its status, see how much you’ve earned, and track the status of your payment.” |
Step 6: Help them send 2 more introductions
| YOU | North star - Immediately say: “Want to send 1 more while we’re here? It takes like 5 seconds.” OR “Let’s send 2 more while we’re here. Takes 5 seconds.” |
The real leverage
Our data shows that 1 in 5 introductions turns into a car sale within 90 days. Every warm introduction is another opportunity to sell a car.
The difference between getting 1 introduction and getting 3 can be just 60 more seconds with the customer. Take an extra minute to help the customer send 2 more.
Outsmart the competition in 5 minutes a week
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